The freepicerie caravan received a new visit from the municipal police on October 15 in Belle-Beille. After being expelled from Monplaisir and the Roseraie, the collective fears a new parking ban and no longer being able to continue distributions.
The freepicerie travels to the Belle-Beille campus to carry out its distributions. – © Julien Schott – Radio Campus Angers
Potatoes, squash and other seasonal vegetables are displayed on a stall in front of the caravan. Ideally placed in front of the entrance to the university restaurant, the caravan attracts many curious people who come to help themselves at free prices.
For three years, this solidarity and itinerant grocery store has made it easier for many students to feed themselves. “ We’ve changed the way we shop. We go to the freegrocer on Tuesday, then we supplement with other stores », explains Oyana, a student at Belle-Beille.
This solidarity grocery store was created by a collective within the Grande Ourse squat, evicted in January 2021, then in the Étincelle premises. In 2021, following the closure of the premises, the freepicerie volunteers decided to launch a mobile grocery store.
A traveling caravan that travels as close as possible to people in need
In Belle-Beille, distributions began in the parking spaces, in front of the Faculty of Letters, Languages and Human Sciences. After discussions between student members of the collective and the university, the caravan was authorized to set up directly in front of the university restaurant. Since the start of the school year, the mobile grocery store has been distributing vegetables, clothing and hygiene products at free prices every Tuesday from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
For the collective, the freepicerie project is not just a charitable action. Their project is twofold: to ensure that people reclaim their food and establish solidarity that allows everyone to eat their fill. The idea is to facilitate access to quality food for people in need. For this, they mainly obtain their supplies from the Angevin Jardin de Cocagne, which is responsible for harvesting and then distributing vegetables to different associations.
When you come to do your shopping there, there is no need for income or family quotient forms. For Titou, member of the collective, “ people know what they need and what they are able to give in return for food “. The freegrocery wants to place itself completely on the fringes of the market and commercial economy.
A status that poses a problem for Angers town hall
Since the launch of their mobile grocery store, the police have come to check the caravan around ten times. The last check took place on October 15, during a distribution on the Belle-Beille campus. This time, no consequences, the collective has an agreement with the university and has a parking permit.
The members of the freepicerie expressed their indignation in a press release published on October 22 on Instagram. The collective regrets “ ever-increasing harassment from the municipal police ».
The freepicerie offers food products at free prices. – © Julien Schott – Radio Campus Angers
However, since the beginning, the City’s position has been the same. The latter in fact wants the collective to regularize itself by forming an association. Without a parking permit issued by the City, the freepicerie does not have the right to carry out its distributions on public roads.
In 2023, Jeanne Behre-Robinson, security assistant, explained in the columns of Ouest France: “ There are rules, they are the same for everyone. We do not settle on the public domain as we want. »
The solution to this conflict may seem simple, but the collective does not wish to found an association. According to them, there is no reason to change the way the freegrocery works. “ We don’t want to enter into an associative scheme with accounting, we don’t necessarily have the time to do that », explains Léo, member of the collective.
For Titou, the few hours of vegetable distribution during the week do not justify such an investment. “ The most important thing is to request authorization from the town hall or to give people food? », she asks herself.
Fight against student precariousness
Léo denounces the absence of policy regarding the fight against student precariousness, particularly on the question of housing. “ Today, more and more students are having difficulty eating several meals a day », recalls the young man. In its press release, the collective directly attacks the city: “ Feeding people is a necessity, repressing those who do it is a shame! »
For several years, food insecurity among students has only increased. According to a barometer published at the start of the 2024 school year by the Cop1 association, 36% of students regularly skip a meal and only 18% resort to food aid. “ Members of the collective give a lot of their time to feed people in need. We consider that it is up to the State to fulfill this role, not us », concludes Léo.
Article proposed by Julien Schott, in partnership with Radio Campus Angers.
